Yuck! Don't use vaseline on polished fuchs
 

After screwing up, and then reading the old posts, I have to agree that you should not use vaseline on *polished* fuchs. It's apparantly fine for the black centers and anodozed lips wheels, but not good for polished fuchs.

So now two of my once-beautiful polished fuchs are all cloudy. I'm going to keep trying to wipe off the remaining thin film of vaseline, maybe using some real hot water on a cloth.

Then I will try Mother's Mag & Aluminum Polish to get them to shine again. Please slap me upside the head now before I use the Mother's stuff if I shouldn't.

Soap and water. Back to where you started in minutes.

Yes, Dawn would probably break right through that.

That was bad!:D

Thanks for the advice guys. I'll try the Dawn. Reminds me of a friend who used to say say he always woke up at the crack of Dawn. (I don't need to tell you his wife's name. )

This is what I get for messing with perfection. I just wanted to shake loose a couple of old drips stains, maybe from the P.O. overdoing some Tire Black.

So I am hoping the Mother's stuff can get rid of those old drip stains...stains that only I would notice of course. See, I just can't leave well enough alone.
Thanks.

Mother's on the polished parts, Vaseline on the black. Works great. A terry cloth polishing pad works great for applying the Vaseline.

I'll tell you my thoughts.
I have had polished alum. wheels with no coating on them and Fuchs with an anodized finish. After washing them with hot soapy water, I go over them with Meguires Gold Glass Wax, this will make them look great, it will also take off and road tar or grime. I use this wax as a bug and tyar remover, it seems to work better than "bug and tar remover". My suggestion is givew it a try, It is my favorite wax of all time. I used to own (sold it to buy my 911) an black show car with a paint job you could shave i it was so nice. The Meguires Gold Glass was the best wax I have ever found, and I spent alot of money trying the other waxes. If you use this wax, FOLLOW THE DIRRECTIONS!!!,rub it on and let it dry, the rub it off, this is not Zymol, it is much easier if you follow the directions.

If the black part is paint (and not anodized) wouldn't it be better to just wax the black part?

I still don't understand the vaseline on the painted parts deal.

I use mild car wash and a boar's hair brush (only P-21S if they're really dirty, which is very rare) to clean them, then a coat of Griot's Best of Show Wax (any quality wax will do). It makes the black look like new and cleans up to anodized parts nicely, leaving a protective coating that makes them that much easier to clean next time.

Don't get carried away with the Dawn soap. That stuff (at least the original formula) is a pretty heavy detergent soap. So don't anybody use it regularly to clean the wheels. One time is not a big deal. Definitely good at cutting mild grease, no doubt.

I had a set of polished wheels and I found that the Mother's polish actually dulled the finish a bit. I think that stuff is just slightly too abrasive to get a true mirror-like finish. Seemed to take away the gleaming finish and leave it ever so slightly hazy. I'd recommend the jeweler's rouge stuff for the final polishing.

I've been using "Wheel Wax' for about a year now and I like it alot. Cleaning brake dust and grime is much easier.
I also apply a thick coat on my wheels (without buffing off) before the car goes to sleep for the winter.

That's right. There's a lot of confusion about the use of vaseline on wheels. It only is appropriate for anodized finishes - not polished or painted.

I agree on the vaseline for painted surfaces. Usually not effective or necessary.

BUT in this case it actually seems to work. Typically, flat or satin paints do not agree with waxes. So petroleum jelly does the job pretty well. And wax does work well on the Fuchs satin finish too. The good thing about petroleum jelly is it has no abrasives in it. Some "waxes" do have abrasives. Too much waxing and you'll start to have paint coming off the Fuchs black centers. I've seen it. It usually happens on the rounds of the petals.

Kevin knows detailing...trust me on that :)

Does Vasoline on the black make it more glossy? :)

Yeah. A little bit. Certainly doesn't approach a gloss finish. But it does get rid of the pale, flat finish of neglected satin paint. Basically deepens the black and takes the grayness/haze out of it.